Concentrated light beams, such as are provided by certain lasers, are used in a variety of different applications. One characteristic of such beams that makes them valuable in these varied applications is their ability to deliver a highly concentrated beam of optical power as a collimated beam that provides precision in position, size, and distribution at high intensity levels. The quality of this performance may, however, be impaired by degradation of the quality of the light beam, such as may result from aging of components, vibration and shock, deterioration of a lasing medium, thermal drift, poor optical alignment, and various other sources of component nonlinearity. A change in the intensity profile of the light beam, even if there is no change in the total power output of the beam, may have significant adverse consequences on performance.
Because of these concerns, it is useful for the light beam to be profiled periodically so that the intensity profile may be evaluated. A challenge in performing such profiling is the intensity of the beam itself since the very high power transfer may damage the profiling device. In particular, many conventional beam-profiling systems face difficulties when beam power density approach values on the order of thousands of watts per square centimeter.
There is accordingly a general need in the art for methods and devices that permit profiling of concentrated light beams.